Bloomberg's Landmark Speech on Ground Zero Mosque
Bloomberg, the mayor of new york city, has stood firmly in support of the mosque and islamic center being built in close proximity to ground zero in spite of some harsh objection to it from some. Bloomberg is a very successful ex-businessman who is worth billions, and is, of course, jewish.
"Whatever you may think of the proposed mosque and community center, lost in the heat of the debate has been a basic question: Should government attempt to deny private citizens the right to build a house of worship on private property based on their particular religion?" Bloomberg asked. "That may happen in other countries, but we should never allow it to happen here. This nation was founded on the principle that the government must never choose between religions, or favor one over another."
The video can be found here
http://www.aolnews.com/surge-desk/article/mayor-bloombergs-ground-zero-mosque-speech-video/19579997
"Whatever you may think of the proposed mosque and community center, lost in the heat of the debate has been a basic question: Should government attempt to deny private citizens the right to build a house of worship on private property based on their particular religion?" Bloomberg asked. "That may happen in other countries, but we should never allow it to happen here. This nation was founded on the principle that the government must never choose between religions, or favor one over another."
The video can be found here
http://www.aolnews.com/surge-desk/article/mayor-bloombergs-ground-zero-mosque-speech-video/19579997
Comments
I think it is a politically smart move on the governor's part to both acknowledge that Constitutional validity of the Park51 community center, and yet at the same time offer the state's assistance to move should the organizers accept this assistance. I believe that it is important for the Muslim community to stand proud and stick to the original plan. If the plan to have this be a place for cultural integration works, then this will be a huge benefit to the image of Muslims in America in the long term. It is a tall order, but one that is attainable, and one that is immensely important not only for Muslims to gain general acceptance in this country, but also to fight extremism within the Muslim community at large.